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Title: Interstella 5555 - The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem
UK Distributor: Virgin Records / EMI (DVD & CD)
BBFC Certificate: PG
Suggested Retail Price (SRP): £19.99
Running Time: 65mins (approx.)
Audio Options: English 5.1 & DTS
Subtitles: None
Reviewer: Joe Leythorne
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Its been a couple of years since Daft Punk released their
second album Discovery, but that album is bound to get a bit of interest stoked
up in it again with the release of Interstella 5555, a film that is essentially
one long anime video for the album. Fans will probably recall a fair chunk of it
as it was chopped up and used for the videos for their singles, but now we are
finally treated to the whole thing.
Because the album is of a retro-disco nature, the visuals are typically retro to
suit it. Don't expect any flashy computer animation, or in fact any of the
innovations that have cropped up in the last twenty years of anime, cause this
is total back to roots stuff from Leiji Matsumoto. But this is roots-revisitation
in a good way, and not the snobby nostalgia that usually crops up in association
with retro-anime. In fact, its actually quite preferable, and quite charming in
a camp kinda way.
The story, as you would expect, is completely bizarre. A band from another
galaxy is kidnapped by an evil music manager, who wants to create the greatest
band on Earth, and only the greatest space pilot in galaxy (who flies a ship
shaped like a Flying V) can save them. See? but don't let that put you off,
because there's some sly comment about manufactured bands and the evil nature of
the music industry in there somewhere.
But lets get down to brass tacks here. If you are a NuMetal fan you will hate
this film. In fact, if you aren't a fan of Discovery then you will probably find
this film hard going. There is no real dialogue, as the vocals and moods from
the album do all the talking. I quite liked it myself, but having to sit through
the songs I didn't like was a bit annoying. Then there is the animation itself.
If you aren't fond of that whole Battle of the Planets style that was the norm
in the '70's and early '80's, you will find Interstella 5555 as annoying as our
Linkin Park fan. But if you dig the disco style, and aren't afraid of
anime that
isn't all big guns and panties, or even just want to rekindle your love of
French/Japanese collaborations, then this film is an absolute treat and a rare
find indeed, as it is a total labour of love for all that were involved in its
creation. See it and be stoked!
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